July 21, 2013

Christiansburg, Va. — South Carolina junior Patricia Kranz claimed fourth place on the three-meter springboard on Saturday afternoon at the USA Diving Senior Zone Championships.

Kranz posted a score of 267.50 to qualify for the USA Diving National Championships, which will be held Aug. 13-18 in Iowa City, Iowa.

“Patti qualifying for nationals is a huge feat for her,” South Carolina head diving coach Todd Sherritt said. “She is in position to break in to the top 16 in the nation. She is on schedule to be good enough to make All-American this year. This was a significant victory for her today.”

A native of Davie, Fla., Kranz also teamed up with sophomore Lauren Lamendola in the three-meter synchronized event to finish second with a score of 245.64 to also qualify for the National Championships.

“Lauren and Patti qualifying for synchronized on the three-meter will be the first team we have had at nationals for some time,” Sherritt said. “Synchronized diving is not a college event, so it is rare to have two that can do it well. I am excited to see how they will do.”